As leaders in industrial marking and coding systems, we know the importance of keeping up with packaging news. Recently, 3M released a limited edition promotional package in Germany that illustrates just how effective and innovative product packaging can be, when it introduced its “empty” box design in the summer of last year.

Scotch Magic Tape is known for its invisible qualities on paper, boxes, cartons, and other surfaces. The limited-time promotional package “drove home” the invisible nature of the product further, by giving consumers the illusion that the box is empty. Essentially, while the boxes hold five rolls of replacement tape, it appears to be empty. How was this accomplished?

Kolle-Rebbe, a creative agency based in Hamburg, came up with the idea for 3M, whose Magic Tape makes tears and rips in paper “magically” disappear. This is accomplished by the strategic placing of an ultra-thin mirror inside the package. The specially designed mirror is placed at an angle in such a way that the package appears to be empty, while the product is stowed away in an invisible pocket.

Additionally, Kolle-Rebbe went a step further by including the green plaid design synonymous with Scotch Tape inside the box, giving the package a “greener,” more sustainable design element. Executive Creative Director at Kolle-Rebbe, Sascha Hanke, said that all of the materials used in the design of the “empty box” package were tested for sustainability in order to adhere to the ethos of “a greener choice” for Scotch Tape.

The carton has received such a positive response that a second edition is now in the works. Hanke went on to say that several major 3M markets were interested in the carton, and that hopefully the innovative new packaging would spread to more markets in 2015.

At REA JET, we are constantly amazed at the creativity in packaging, as well as its impact on consumers and its ability to increase brand awareness. Hopefully we will see this innovative “empty carton” design in Scotch Tape in the U.S. this year! As suppliers of a wide range of industrial printing solutions, we are always interested in what’s going on in the package design industry. We invite manufacturers to learn more about the wide array of coding and marking systems we provide.